A Gloomy Monday and a Sunny Elephant

Happy Monday! ...If Mondays can ever be happy, especially when they're so gloomy. A rainy Monday could be considered an inspirational Monday. However, gloomy just makes for a dreary Monday. To make it better, I thought I'd share my creation from one of Khan Academy's Hour of Drawing with Code. It's a very happy elephant enjoying the sun. 

Yes, it's a very trivial drawing, but I found it fun to do. The hardest part to create was the trunk. If you're at all familiar with Khan Academy, you can actually see my code for this here. You can play around and update my code to create your own thing! Possibly a way better elephant than mine... Once you're finished, if you're logged in to a Khan Academy account (and probably even if you're not), you can click "Spin Off." It will save your version under my version's spin offs. Then I'll get to see your creation!

So why did I take an hour (technically over an hour) to do the Hour of Code for Khan Academy? Well, it was my job... sort of.

This summer I've had the fun pleasure of doing summer research at my school. We've been exploring the many resources out there that teach people, specifically kids, to code. Our projects goal is to bring coding to elementary schools as well as create an Hour of Code for our College-aged peers.

So far it's been a neat experience! Here are just a few things I've explored and what I think about them:

• Code.org 
• A resource that is COMPLETELY FREE for anyone to use. It's friendly for teachers because it has lesson plans at the ready and a video geared towards teachers to explain the lessons.
• Below is the screen shot where I nerd-out on Facebook about the all-day workshop for in-service teachers I was able to attend.
• 

• KhanAcademy.org 
• I've used Khan Academy multiple times for learning math. I've always enjoyed it as a positive and free resource that's helpful for practicing your math skills. Since I used it in Middle School/High School, it has changed a lot. They offer a wide variety of subjects. They have early math to beyond calculus, history, biology, chemistry, and many others.  
• Yes, Computing is now one of their subjects. I explored that one for my summer research project. I'm not entirely sure what I think of it yet. It is very fun and informative. My only curiosity with it is how does what is learned there, specifically the coding languages, transfer outside of their website. I'm currently doing some of their classes, so I'll post an update later.

• Scratch.mit.edu
• This resource is great for its limitless possibilities. Even if you never create anything, you should explore all the creations others have made. It allows users to use block language to create programs. This is a quick overview of why block language is useful. I'm not as familiar with Scratch as the the previous two resources, but it's definitely is fun to use and test one's creativity.

While I've only listed three resources, it's not because there aren't that many, it's because these are the main ones I found interesting. If you'd like to explore more resources, please go here. There are so many things out there. 

I hope when our Research project is done, that I will have made sense of all the resources and how they work together. I find that might not be impossible to do, but it's worth a shot.

While people may think it's crazy to teach children how to code, I would like to argue that it's crazy not to teach them how to code. There is valuable critical and creative thinking that is grown from learning to code. All of the skills we want our kids to be learning like perseverance, problem solving, resourcefulness, and collaboration are learned via Computer Science. Even if these kids never become programmers, they will have become thinkers. We want and need thinkers. Here is a Ted Talk that explains why we should teach kids code. The talk is by the guy who created Scratch.

Thanks for taking your time to enjoy my happy elephant enjoying the sun and reading some of my Computer Science resource findings. 

If you have ANY comments to add regarding Computer Science especially teaching Computer Science to the younger aged group, please feel free to share. Also, if you have a cool name for my elephant, I'm open for suggestions. 

Happy Monday (or whatever day you're reading this)!

Monday Mashup: Phi Theta Kappa Induction

This Monday Mashup is brought to you on a Tuesday in honor of my little sister getting inducted into Phi Theta Kappa!

The photo from 2012 is from my Phi Theta Kappa Induction. If we are rolling with the fact that my little sister looks like my father (the guy directly below her in the other picture), then these two pictures are quite similar! I was one of those rare (but hopefully not-so-rare now) community college students who had heard about, and really wanted to join, Phi Theta Kappa before I received my letter. I will be ever thankful that I had the opportunity to join and call myself a Phi Theta Kappan.

The photo from 2015 was just recently taken last week when my little sister (currently a Junior in High School) was inducted into Phi Theta Kappa. Fortunately, for her, she does not even look as much of a nerd as I did when I joined! She's also, obviously, grown a bit. In 2012, she was about my height. Now, she is about my mom's height. Craziness, I tell you. Craziness.

Phi Theta Kappa is the International Honor Society for community colleges. If anything is working hard to remove the poor stigma that Community Colleges get and bringing thousands of community college students from various backgrounds together, it is this organization.

Phi Theta Kappa's mission is:

"To recognize and encourage scholarship among two-year college students. To achieve this purpose, Phi Theta Kappa shall provide opportunity for the development of leadership and service, for an intellectual climate for exchange of ideas and ideals, for lively fellowship for scholars, and for stimulation of interest in continuing academic excellence."

I was lucky enough to be actively involved in this organization through my previous college's chapter for almost two years. Now, my little sister, who has been an active "member" ever since she went along with me to events, can do her own thing with the organization as an official member! I know she is planning to venture to Texas with our chapter in April for Phi Theta Kappa's annual NerdNation. I can't wait to see where this organization takes her!


[So the idea behind a "Monday Mashup" is that I have many pictures that are similar to other pictures, so I'd like to get a chance to share them "mashed" together. Enjoy and feel free to share your mashups.]

Monday Mashup: Pipe "Smoking"

[So the idea behind a "Monday Mashup" is that I have many pictures that are similar to other pictures, so I'd like to get a chance to share them "mashed" together. Enjoy.]

This Monday Mashup is brought to you by my husband and I fourish years ago! That's right, folks. I give you two pictures from 2010.

While we did know each other at this time and we may or may not have been talking with one another, I find this to be a rather humorous comparison.

He attempts to get me to smoke a pipe, so here is proof that I've "smoked" one before... and in the same year as he actually smoked one!

If you have any mashups, you should share them with me! I'll try to post one each Monday just for fun!

The Days Are Getting Brighter

Today marks the last day of my first school week of my second semester at my new school. Haha.. Did you catch all of that?

So, I just got home and I had a stupid grin on my face, so I decided I'd put the happy feelings to proper use and write a post about my week back at school.

On Monday, after my first day had been completed, I came home at 7:30pm to flowers and dinner all cooked and ready to eat by my wonderful husband. He's such a winner.

Today in my Foundations of Reading class, my teacher, who is super fun and amusing, dubbed me to be the "classroom leader," a.k.a. the main contact person between her and the entire class. She said that in the event that she has an early death, she would contact me.. and I would post on our classroom door that class was canceled. What the heck! Hahaha... I made sure to say that I hope that never happens! Goodness! Anywho, she also had us write in our journals, like she does at the beginning of every class so far, about some things that are "aaaallll goooooood" (why yes, that was said in her voice) in our life right now. I only wrote down three, but I feel that they encompass a lot more than just three items. They explained my feelings toward this week and why I came home with a cheesy grin.

1. Being married -- I'm daily blessed to be able to have my husband for his support, love, care, and goofiness.
2. Working towards my B.A. in Elementary Education -- I'm getting closer to the degree I have always wanted and I'm enjoying the process that gets me there.
3. Making friends -- This semester is a lot better than last semester. I'm definitely starting to feel more comfortable in my many new surroundings.

I've been thinking that I didn't post anything last semester for a multitude of reasons. I feel like saying, "I didn't have enough time" is an extremely terrible excuse that I'm trying to stop using, so it will not be used. Most of my posts would have been very rant filled because things were crazy. I never really found a place and everyone was super intimidating. 

However, there were some great things that happened...

• I managed a B+ in Calculus (which is definitely another reason for the lack of posting. I think it almost ate me during the semester.) after not taking any Trigonometry.
• Volunteered at a center that provides English Language Leaners (ELL) with tutors to work on their English skills. I was able to help a fun and enthusiastic 19 year old from Mexico who improved so much within the time I was able to work with her. It was a rewarding experience.
• Enjoyed most of my classes.
• Made several "it's a small world" connections with a few faculty members.
• Cooked more than I have in my life.. haha..
• Worked on a project about eyes for my Expressive Methods course. (It's rather fun. Maybe I'll do a blog post about it at some point.)
• Went to two weddings. One wedding my husband was in and the other was for my youngest uncle. Might I add that the latter of the two was right in-between taking finals. Craziness!
• FINALLY finished knitting a scarf for my husband (...one year later... To be fair, it was my first scarf I've ever knitted and life gets busy.)
• and definitely a lot more that I'm too lazy to add.

Even though I did enjoy things in my semester, it wasn't my overall favorite semester. 

Luckily, a strange turnaround has occurred. I don't know what happened. Maybe winter break helped me gather my thoughts, or maybe it really took three or four months to adjust. I don't know what happened, but I shall not complain.

This semester I get to..

• Lead the Advertising and Social Media committee for one of my jobs.
• Take Practicum, which will allow me to get 60 hours of in-class field experience and create connections with my future colleagues.
• Hopefully, work more at that center to help improve my English while teaching and improving others.
• Cook more new dishes and treats.
• Become skilled in the area of C++ in my Computer Science class.
• and who knows what else!

Cheers! To the new semester and to hopefully more of my rambles about things. Thank you for reading. (:

(p.s. After writing the blog's title, this song decided to play in my head. Now it can play in yours!)

It's Hard to be a Productive Human Being When...

I find that it is extremely hard to be a productive human being when...

• you're a college student on winter break.
• you have approximately 4 days of freedom until classes start back up.
• you've actually been super productive the past two days.
• and last, but definitely not at all the least important... (see picture below).

(The picture is a screen shot from weather.com)

Am I right?? Why yes, yes I am. I find this weather to be extremely cold. My apartment's heat is set to 80 (because my husband and I, most thankfully, don't pay for heating) and the temperature in our apartment is 60. It isn't right... NOT RIGHT. Not even left. It's just, to put it simply, cold.

To make myself feel like I did more than absolutely nothing today, I think I'll list everything I've done.

I have..

• watched an episode ..or two.. of Bones on Netflix (I've been trying to finish it forever..).
• left the apartment for lunch with the husband and his co-workers and their spouses.
• completed a load of laundry.
• folded the laundry.
• put the laundry away.
• worked on an assignment from work.
• watched another episode of Bones.
• FaceTimed a lil' sister.
• made pizza rolls for dinner.. (What?? everything else took longer to cook when frozen..)
• AND, soon, I will have finally written a blog post for the first time in... EVER.

Wowza! So, maybe I have been a slightly (emphasis on the word slightly) productive human being. I mean, writing a blog post??? That's like running a marathon! *wink*

And that is all. I hope your day was more productive and warmer than mine.

NEW. NEW. NEW.

New state. New School. New responsibilities. Can we get any more major life changes in there?? I hope not, but I certainly will not deny anything because this crazy adventure is about to take off.

6 more days until I move to my dear friend's house in my new state to begin school orientations.

15 more days until I actually begin the first day of my new school.

21 more days until I will be married and move into not only my first place outside of home, but I will also move into my new responsibilities as the wife to my dear husband.

So until August 31st, after 4:30ish pm, please ignore the fact I'm writing this under my new name and saying that I'm married because I'm not! Not yet anyways. 

I begin this blog about my new adventures. There is so much happening that if I don't write about it every now and then, I won't be able to remember it all! So here's to remembering and to many new experiences.